Frijoles Negros (Cuban Black Beans)

A bowl of creamy, rich black beans is the mark of a good Cuban restaurant in my book. This humble dish is one of my all-time favorite Latin side dishes. Give me a bowl of these black beans with a scoop of rice and sprinkling of chopped avocado, and I’m a happy girl. It’s actually a perfect Meatless Monday meal. In fact, these beans are so good, you can eat them all by themselves, no rice, no nothing. While this recipe is made on the stove top, you can also make this dish in the slow cooker. I’ll share both versions below.

Pour the dried beans into a strainer, and rinse them off in cold water. Pick through them to check for small stones, sticks or deformed beans.

Pour the rinsed beans into a large pot, and cover them with 4 cups of water. Bring the beans to a boil, boil them for 2 minutes, and then turn them off. Allow the beans to soak for 1 hour. This is the quick soak method I use to cook dried beans without having to pre-soak them overnight.

Once the beans have soaked for an hour, turn the stove back on, to a medium heat.

Add the sofrito, ham hocks, cumin, oregano, Sazon and bay leaves into the beans. Pour in the chicken stock, and stir the mixture together to combine. Bring the beans to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low. Cover the pot and cook the beans for 2 hours, until they’re tender.

When the beans are done, add the vinegar, cilantro, and salt and pepper, to taste. I like mashing about a cup of the beans with a potato masher to make the liquid extra velvety. That’s totally up to you.

Serve the beans as is, or with some fluffy white rice.

Slow Cooker version:

Soak the beans overnight or do the quick soak method explained above.

Drain the beans of any residual liquid.

Add the soaked beans into the slow cooker insert, along with all the ingredients except the vinegar, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Cook the beans on low for 8 hours. When they’re done, add the vinegar, cilantro, salt and pepper.

You may also like

10 comments

These look amazing. I love black beans. My father is Cuban and his beans and black rice is to die for. Very similar recipe. The ham hocks definitely give the flavor! Can’t wait to check out your site. 🙂

I knew by the ingredient that the beans were going to come out good. I just didn’t know how it was going to taste without tomato sauce. I actually enjoyed them better this way, they didn’t sit so heavy in my stomach. Great recipe!!